


Taste of Ink

by 3cheers12years



Category: Avenged Sevenfold
Genre: Alternate Universe - Tattoo Parlor, Cute, Drabble, F/M, Pet Names, Possible sequel, Reader-Insert, SORRY AYESHA, Tattoo, Tattoo Artist Brian, photographer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-11
Updated: 2016-07-11
Packaged: 2018-07-23 01:05:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7460592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/3cheers12years/pseuds/3cheers12years
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Hi, I saw on your shops Instagram that one of your artists had a cancellation and was available for a walk in?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Taste of Ink

You wring your hands as you step into _Gypsy Woman Tattoo_. The clean smell of the shop assaults your senses, reminding you of hospitals, but in a comforting way. You decide that this is a place you can trust with needles and your skin.

The girl behind the counter smiles at you. Her hair is in a short bob, fringe framing her face. Half of her hair is blue, the other half is purple. Her eye shadow is the same, but on opposite sides. Her smile is bright and friendly. She has a vertical labret and her hands and arms are littered with tattoos, as well as having an unfinished chest piece. She looks like she belongs here.

"Hello, sweetheart, can I help?" she asks, leaning over the counter as you approach. You notice she has a split tongue and a soft lisp. You can only assume its a result of the body modification.

"Hi, I saw on your shops Instagram that one of your artists had a cancellation and was available for a walk in?" you say, rolling your sleeves up and fiddling with the strap on your messenger bag.

She nods and pushes herself away, "Brian Haner, right?" you nod firmly, "Are you looking for black and grey work?" you nod again, "Just making sure, love. Take a seat, I'm gonna go get him for you."

You do as your told and take your sketch out of your bag. You sit and play with the edge of the paper. You question if you should just back out of what you're doing, or at the very least call your best friend for support. Maybe even your mom.

You're snapped out of your thoughts, "Hey, you're here for a walk in?"

You look up from your paper and quickly stand to shake the artists hand, "Yes, hi," you introduce yourself to him.

He smiles at you brightly. You suddenly seem to stop thinking. He's absolutely drop dead _gorgeous_  and you can't deny it. His shirt is fitted and the neckline is a deep v, revealing the lettering across his chest. His arms are strong and muted in colour, but incredibly detailed, and his hands are long and artistic. You almost forget how to breathe.

"I'm Brian. What're you looking to get today?" He asks, one hand slipping into his pocket. You thrust your sketch at him, "Something like this?"

He glances over it for a second, raising an eyebrow and looking at you, "A mandala?" you nod, "You know what it means, right?"

"Balance and harmony," you respond.

"And you're aware its a religious symbol?"

You nod again, "yes, I am."

He smiles at you again, "Just checking. Yeah sure, I can do this for you, all black and grey?" you nod and smile nervously. He checks your placement and size before taking your drawing to do your sketch.

"I'll get Cassie to take your details and I.D and all that shit, alright? I'll draw up your mandala-dream-catcher-... thing. Make yourself comfortable, if you want a coffee I'm sure Cas'll make you some, don't be scared to ask, a'ight?" He says before he leaves.

You assume that the girl behind the desk is Cassie, and you wait for her to come bounding back into reception, making you read and sign your agreement, hand over your passport and license for photocopying. You take up the offer on a coffee.

"Is this your first tattoo?" Cassie asks you as she hands you your cup. Her accent is strong but you can't place it. You think its suits her.

"Yeah... I've never really had the guts until it was an impulse thing." you tell her, cradling your cup between your hands.

She beams at you, "You seem like you know what you want, though, which is good. There's nothing worse than someone who picks something right off the board, y'know? Anyway, you're in safe hands. Brian is so sweet and a fuckin' amazing artist. He did-.. oh my God, wait-" she rolls up her jeans, tugging them out of her military boots to reveal a raven and a black rose, "He gave me this for my birthday. Half price, isn't it gorgeous?"

You nod and gaze at the detail of the feathers. They look soft and fluttery, as if you could stroke them and the bird would come alive beneath your fingertips. It instills you with confidence in your choice. She asks you a few more questions to keep you comfortable and calm you down and you answer between sips of your coffee. You describe your tattoo to her, a mandala inside of a dream-catcher, with three feathers, each with two beads stacked on the string they're hanging from. Her eyes light up as you tell her. "I _love_  how he does feathers!"

"You best be talkin' about me," Brian says, as he enters the room. Cassie laughs. He shows you the sketch and you cannot contain your excitement. It's beautiful. He calls you through with him, getting Cassie to turn the drawing into a stencil as he settles you at his station. You shrug off your jacket. He takes your arm and starts shaving.

"This is your first?" he asks, wiping your arm down.

"Yeah,"

"Are you nervous?" you notice that he's chewing gum,

"Yeah,"

He huffs out a laugh and smiles up at you as he wipes down your arm, "Good. Nerves keep you going." He draws two lines on your arm to mark the centre as Cassie slips in, placing the stencil on his work station. He winks at her as he thanks her and she exits quietly.

He places the stencil carefully, pressing it onto your skin.

"Your hands are really warm," you say quietly. He laughs.

"I think its the gloves. I've normally got very cold hands."

"It feels kinda nice,"

"Well make the most of it, 'cause the needles won't." He peels back the paper and tells you to look in the mirror.

You love the positioning, the size and the design. You can't fault it. You ask if it's gonna hurt as you return to the station.

"Of course. It's needles stabbing you repeatedly. Honestly, it's not that bad, but everyone has a different pain threshold and some places hurt more than others- lie down for me? That's a girl-, but yeah, it's not so bad with black and grey 'cause you don't have the colour to do after. That's when the skin gets _really_  tender," Whilst he's talking, he's settling your arm onto a rest and picking up his machine, double checking your skin is all prepped and getting himself comfortable.

"Are you ready?" he asks.

You take a deep breath, "As I'll ever be."

He laughs, "You're a trooper. I'm just gonna do a little line first so you can get a feel for it, okay sugar?"

  
You nod. He pushes the pedal by his feet and leans toward his ink, "Wait!"

He freezes, foot immediately off the pedal, "You alright?"

"I, yeah, I just-... do you mind if I take my shoes off? It'll be more comfortable..."

He laughs loudly, "Of course, do what you want. Jesus, woman, I thought you were gonna fuckin' back out for a second."

You laugh slightly as you slip off your converse. You tent your legs once you've slipped them off and settle back down, "Sorry,"

"It's fine. Anything else?" you shake your head, "Gnarly,"

He repeats what he did a moment ago. Repositioning your arm, pressing his pedal and reaching to dip the needle into the black, "Just a little line at first, sweetheart. You're in safe hands here," he tells you as he rubs petroleum jelly over a small section and the needle makes contact with your skin.

For a second, it feels okay. Then it's suddenly like your entire arm is on fire, but as quickly as the sensation comes, it goes again. You can feel your hand resting against Brian's chest due to the position of your arm. You breathe out a breath you didn't even know you were holding.

"Not so bad, hey?" he asks. You shake your head, "Am I okay to carry on?" you nod this time. He smiles and continues.

There's a few minutes of silence before you decide you're calm enough to break the silence. "So, how long have you been tattooing?"

He hums and sits up slightly, refilling his machine with ink, "About 15 years officially. I did an apprenticeship for a while, which was great. You get kinda shit on a lot as an apprentice but like-... it's worth it in this line of work, y'know?"

"Yeah I get that,"

"What do you do?"

"I'm a freelance photographer, which is good right now 'cause work is picking up for me, but my 'real job' is in _Charlotte Russe_." you reply, watching as he outlines the stencil. He laughs quietly.

"Your 'real job'. I like that. What sort of photography do you do?" he asks. He's still smacking on his gum.

You tell him you do mostly human form nowadays, which means that the wedding business is booming. But you like experimenting with whatever you can.

"I just like taking photos of things I find beautiful. Makes me wish I'd brought my camera with me today, everything in this shop is exceptional. Including you."

"Awh shucks,"

"I'm serious. I'd love to have the chance to photograph you sometime,"

Brian shrugs, wiping off excess ink and glancing up briefly before returning to his work, "Really?"

"Really. I think you'd make a very interesting subject. Especially with your attitude. You have this-... this swagger about you, y'know? This confidence that I've never seen in someone so polite and genuine. And the contrast of your tattoos against a stark white studio would be something incredible," he hums quietly. You can feel him swaying towards the idea, "Not to mention you have a face to _die_  for."

He laughs loudly and you grin and defend yourself, "I mean it! Brian you have this insanely strong bone structure and ski-slope nose, with captivating eyes and the most charming smile I have ever seen in my whole life. Not just career, my _life_."

"Alright, alright. How about I make a deal with you, yeah? You give me your card at the end of this session and we'll work out a booking for your portfolio or whatever you wanna do with it. I'll give you you a 20% discount on this if you give me one of the photos from the shoot for free. How does that sound to you, sugar?"

You almost squeal, "That is perfect. Thank you so much!"

He grins, his incisors catching on his bottom lip as he does so, "No no, sugar, thank _you_."

Your conversation strays. You find out that Brian plays guitar in a band (which you tell him you'll make a point of coming to see), that he has a Maltese, that he's lost count of how many tattoos he has and that he's been working at this shop for 5 years. You also find out that his work has been the destroyer of his relationships. You eventually run out of things to talk about and he starts quietly singing along to the soft radio in the background.

You relax. The lack of conversation makes you focus on the feeling of the tattoo needle. It hurts more now, but you're settled in the fact that it'd nearly done. It feels like tiny little scratches but the vibrations of the needle carry through your entire body. Your hand has gone cold from dangling in the same position but the warmth of Brian's torso makes it a little more comfortable.

Brian shuts off the needle and sits up, "And we are about done,"

You grin, "Really?"

He nods, "Yes we are. Lemme just clean you up and you can go take a look."

You almost squeal with excitement. You do, however, sigh with contentment as he wipes down your arm with sterilized water. You tell him that he could do that for the next hour and you wouldn't at all complain. He laughs, "You'd be surprised at how many people say that." You totally understand why, the cooling sensation is so soothing that you never want it to stop. Him wiping it dry again, however, that can stop _immediately_.

You stand slowly and look at your tattoo. You cannot believe how beautiful it is. You can't hide the smile that's growing on your face. "It's so beautiful, thank you so _so_  much! I honestly can't believe it..."

He stretches from his chair and slides away from the table, "You are more than welcome, sweetheart. Now c'mere, I gotta wrap that shit up."

Whilst he's wrapping the tattoo, he's giving the lowdown on healing the tattoo, giving you advice on what lotions to use and how often to clean, as well as the do's and don'ts of a fresh tattoo. On top of that, he tells you that you'll receive an aftercare sheet.

He follows you through to reception as Cassie prints the aftercare. "So, what about our deal?"

You gasp and rummage through your bag until you find one of your business cards and negotiate a time, jotting it on the back of the card and handing it over to him before handing over the money.

He smiles brightly at you, "Awesome. Thank you, sugar. Look after that tattoo, get home safe."

You smile back, holding out your hand to shake it, "Thank you, Brian. It's beautiful, I'm in love."

He kisses your hand as a goodbye, winking at you as he does so, "You're very _very_ welcome."

**Author's Note:**

> Title - Taste of Ink - The Used  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZka3E37k6w 
> 
> I wanted a break from Beautiful Dirty Rich so I thought I'd get some dumb tattoo artist!au drabble done.
> 
> Characters belong to themselves, all a work of fiction.


End file.
